Let's take concussion out of play!

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We all worry when our kids get a knock to their head - whether it be from falling off the monkey bars at school or a rough tackle on the field. We may not realise it but concussion is serious and more prevalent in our community than we think. One in three kids will have a concussion before the age of 16 and some may have life-long challenges with memory and attention as a result.

My name is Vicki Anderson, I am the Head of Clinical Sciences at the Murdoch Childrens and the Head of Psychology at The Royal Children's Hospital. I want to create a free smartphone app, called HeadCheck, to help parents recognise symptoms of concussion in their children, with the hope of reducing serious side effects like those experienced by Emily.

Emily's story

Emily is a 16 year old girl that loves riding horses. Last year she was thrown from her horse during practice. She was taken to the local hospital and diagnosed with concussion. A week later she seemed fine.

A few weeks later Emily fell again and was rushed to The Royal Children's Hospital with severe memory loss and diagnosed with yet another concussion. This time the consequences were much more serious because she hadn't fully recovered from her first concussion. Emily returned to school after a few weeks but struggled with headaches and excessive tiredness. It took her more than four months to recover. To this day she still experiences memory problems.

In the words of Emily's dad Peter, "If we realised that she hadn't fully recovered from the first concussion, we wouldn't have let her back on the horse...this is where an app like HeadCheck would have really helped us."

We want to build HeadCheck for dads like Peter and we need your help to make that happen.

Our solution

If your child knocks their head and you're worried, HeadCheck can help you work out what to do next.

HeadCheck will ask you simple questions about how your child is feeling to help you recognise symptoms of concussion. Based on the severity of these symptoms, HeadCheck can suggest whether you should see a doctor or call an ambulance. Following the incident, you can also use HeadCheck to track how your child is recovering from symptoms.

What can you do to help?

Show your support by donating to our campaign. Every donation counts, no matter how big or small.

If you believe in what we are trying to achieve, become a HeadCheck ambassador, and help us raise funds and promote awareness of concussion.

How the funds will be used

Currently we have built a prototype app called HeadCheck for the iPhone. Now we need to raise $15,000 to further the app's development.

The funds raised will go directly towards completing the development of the HeadCheck app for the iPhone and to build an app for Android phones. Any funds raised beyond the target amount will be used to enhance the features of the app to make it even more useful to parents.

Challenges

Building the app is only half the challenge. We need to get it in the hands of people to truly make a difference.

We have the support of the Raising Children Network to help spread the message. Fox Sporting Pulse, the largest grassroots sports network in the country, have also offered to promote the app to their members.

But we also need your help! The job of a HeadCheck Ambassador doesn't stop at raising funds. We need you to spread the message about HeadCheck and help take concussion out of play.

If you are an organisation interested in getting behind this campaign and help us raise awareness around concussion, we would love to hear from you.

Team Members

$5,800

When ignored concussion can lead to serious long term memory and attention impairments. We need your help to build a smartphone app to assist parents in recognising the symptoms of concussion in kids.

Murdoch Childrens Research Institute
Parkville, Victoria, Australia

Donations Closed

Perks

$25Good Vibes

A virtual high five and good vibes sent your way.

Est. Delivery Date: May 2015
7 claimed
Unlimited left

$50A shout out!

A personal thank you on Facebook and Twitter.

Est. Delivery Date: May 2015
5 claimed
95 left

$100Ambassador status

Become a HeadCheck ambassador and help us spread this important public health message! Apart from your ambassador armour (HeadCheck Badge and t-shirt), you will get early (beta) access to the app, be able to provide feedback during the development of the app, and have the opportunity to help us with field trials.

Est. Delivery Date: May 2015
7 claimed
43 left

$250Individual in-App kudos

Your name in lights! A personal, in-App acknowledgment of your generous donation.

Spread the word with your exclusive HeadCheck fixie.
Shipping available within Australia only.

Est. Delivery Date: Jun 2015
1 claimed
None left

$1,500An exclusive visit

An exclusive visit (with a friend) to Murdoch Childrens to meet the researchers that improve child health in Australia and internationally. Your visit will include lunch with the researchers and the development team who are working on HeadCheck.

Est. Delivery Date: Jun 2015
0 claimed
2 left

$2,500Concussion, what it means

A 45 minute presentation to your club by a concussion expert from Murdoch Childrens. Available only in Victoria .

Est. Delivery Date: Jun 2015
0 claimed
3 left

$3,000An exclusive visit with your mates

An exclusive visit (with 9 friends) to Murdoch Childrens to meet the researchers that improve child health in Australia and internationally. Your visit will include lunch with the researchers and the development team who are working on HeadCheck.